Ecobreves – HONDURAS: Universities Commit to the Environment

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TEGUCIGALPA, Aug 25 2008 (IPS) - The 20 universities in Honduras signed an environmental pledge on Aug. 18 that includes reforms in their programs and greater participation in managing threatening situations, research and policies. “It is time to get more involved in this national and global problem in order to prevent the destruction of the environment, for lack of awareness in most cases, exhausting our natural resources,” Jorge Arita, rector of the Autonomous National University of Honduras, told Tierramérica.

“Due to circumstances, the academic world has been very distant from those problems, but climate change is no longer a theory, but a tangible fact, and universities cannot continue seeking reforms without purpose, changes without solutions, and talking about participation without getting involved ourselves,” he said.

The 20 public and private institutions of higher learning agreed to set up an inter-university committee for ecological sciences in order to generate knowledge, research and a stronger link to society, which will help them formulate a public environmental policy in the coming year.